Category Archives: Uncategorized

LAS VEGAS – Tim O’Connell is having a pretty solid National Finals Rodeo. He’d like it to be exceptional. That’s what it’s going to take over the final four nights of the season if he hopes to win a fourth straight bareback riding world championship. “This field is rank,” said O’Connell, who rode Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Scarlet’s Web for 88 points to finish fourth in Tuesday’s sixth round and pocket $11,000. “I’m trying my guts out, and an 88-point ride places fourth. That score will win any rodeo in the United States by a landslide, but not here, not against these guys. “I’m doing my job. I’m leaving it out there every night. I’m making smart rides.” He sits seventh in the world standings with $172,668, $59,500 of which has come in Las Vegas. His Tuesday ride featured a talented bay mare that’s been to the NFR 13 times; this is just the sixth trip for O’Connell. “That horse looks like a grizzly bear,” he said of Scarlet’s Web. “Being from Texas, she has here winter hair. She’s been so good for so long, and she was great tonight. She was awesome, and she gave me a chance to go after the round tonight.” Instead, a trio of cowboys – Clayton Biglow, Tilden Hooper and Caleb Bennett – beat O’Connell by a half point. Now the cowboy from Zwingle, Iowa, trails Biglow, the world standings leader, by almost $94,000. Biglow also leads the average race with a cumulative score of 523.5 points on six rides, while O’Connell is two points behind in second place. “I care about the average, but I don’t care about it right now,” O’Connell said. “I’m worried about winning rounds right now. I’m going to start taking more chances the next few nights. I’m here to win a world title. I do understand the average will win you the world, per say, but I need to shut this gap on Clayton. “I know what I’m capable of. We’ve got four rounds left to do it, and there is probably $170,000 up for grabs when it’s all said and done. Anybody who thinks it’s over is a fool.” The average is big, because the winner will pocket $67,269 for having the best aggregate score after 10 rounds. Second place pays $54,577, so that difference could be the world title. The bareback riders will face the rank horses Wednesday, then will be back in the “Eliminator Pen” on Thursday. “I train for these next two rounds, the ones I feel are my strongest, the buckers and the eliminators,” he said. “When you put us on the bigger, stronger horses, that is where I shine. I’ve always said the world title is on in Round 6, 7 and 8. “I know how important these next two rounds are. I’ve put in the work at home for these next two rounds.”

LAS VEGAS – Saddle bronc rider Colt Gordon and Outlawbuckers Rodeo’s Little Muffin have a good history, which repeated itself Tuesday night. Gordon and the bay bucking horse matched moves for 85 points to finish in a three-way tie for fourth place in the sixth round of the National Finals Rodeo, and the Oklahoma cowboy pocketed another $7,333. “I got on him in the short round at Pendleton this year,” said Gordon, who was 89 points to win that round and the average title at the big, Oregon rodeo in September. “It went really well there. I was expecting a lot better today, but the flank wrapped around my foot coming around the corner, and it popped me out of (the saddle). “I got to finish him how I wanted, got some money, and that’s all that matters right now.” It marked the second straight night he’d cashed in at the NFR. He has pushed his Vegas winnings to $19,449 and moved his season earnings to $110,519. Better yet, he has four more rounds remaining on the 2019 season to keep adding to those totals. “All the bugs are out now,” said Gordon, 22, of Comanche, Oklahoma, now competing in ProRodeo’s premier event for the first time in his young career. “I’m ready to get everything rolling. Coming into that first day, I was moving around a little too much. I was wanting to do so good that I was just overthinking everything. “You don’t realize how much pressure is here until you are a couple of days in and everything gets set in, and you get it figured out.” It will get a bit tougher on the bronc riders Wednesday and Thursday. They face the “Eliminator Pen” in Round 7 – only four cowboys earned qualified rides the first time that group of horses were out – and the semi-eliminators Thursday. Gordon isn’t concerned, though. “Those horses fit me a little more,” he said. “They don’t let you think about things. On horses that are a little nicer, a guy can get to thinking about it. With those that buck, you just have to hope for the best.” He also has something different in his back pocket than the first time he faced the rank broncs. “My confidence is way up from the first couple of rounds,” Gordon said. “I feel back to my old self. We are ready to go.”

LAS VEGAS – When J.D. Struxness didn’t get a time in Monday’s fifth round of the National Finals Rodeo, some saw it as a devastating situation. Struxness saw it as a hiccup. “I got an outstanding start, and that steer fell to the right like they do here when you do that,” he said. “I tried reaching out there, and I couldn’t get my hands on him. We just shrug that one off. There are still nine other rounds, and we knew we had five more chances. We came back (Tuesday) night, and we were able to place again.” He did in a big way. He wrestled his steer to the ground in 3.9 seconds to finish in a tie for second place in the sixth round. That $18,192 pushed his NFR earnings to $80,513. He sits third in the world standings with $163,342 and trails the leader, reigning world champion Tyler Waguespack, by less than $14,000. “After what happened (Monday), we just needed a good, honest steer like that to come back and get our confidence back,” said Struxness of Milan, Minnesota, now living in Alva, Oklahoma. “We came back, got a good start and did our job. We won second, and we will keep moving on during the week. Hopefully we keep pulling checks in the rounds. “(Monday) was frustrating. There were some things I could have done different to make sure I caught that one. It happened, and there isn’t any looking back when there is $26,000 on the line the next night. You just have to shrug it off, come back and stay aggressive, and try to get all the money you can in the rounds.” He has a great deal of help, whether it’s the family in the Nevada desert supporting him or leaning on his hazer, Stockton Graves, one of his traveling partners who was his former coach at Northwestern Oklahoma State University. Struxness became the university’s first national champion in 2016, winning the aggregate title at the College National Finals Rodeo that June – the Rangers snagged two more titlists in 2010 when breakaway roper Taylor Munsell and steer wrestler Bridger Anderson found success in Casper, Wyoming. As he has done all summer, he is riding Graves’ horse, Freeway, and trusts Graves to keep the steers aligned to make solid runs. “We are going to be aggressive again,” Struxness said of the team’s approach to the final four nights of the 2019 ProRodeo campaign. “We’ll go out there, make good runs and use the animals they draw us the best we can.”

Bareback riding: 1. Clayton Biglow, 92.5 points on Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Scarlett Belle, $26,231; 2. Tilden Hooper, 92, $20,731; 3. Orin Larsen, 91, $15,654; 4. Caleb Bennett, 90, $11,000; 5. Tanner Aus, 89.5, $6,769; 6. Richmond Champion, 89, $4,231. Steer wrestling: 1. Kyle Irwin, 3.7 seconds, $26,231; 2. Dakota Eldridge, 4.0, $20,731; 3. Riley Duvall, 4.1, $15,654; 4. Hunter Cure, 4.2, $11,000; 5. Will Lummus, 4.7, $6,769. Team roping: 1. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 4.2 seconds, $26,231; 2. (tie) Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes and Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, 4.4, $18,192 each; 4. Luke Brown/Paul Eaves, 5.1, $11,000; 5. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 5.3, $6,769; 6. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 6.3, $4,231. Saddle bronc riding: 1. Jake Watson, 92 points on Burch Rodeo’s Lunatic From Hell, $26,231; 2. Rusty Wright, 90.5, $20,731; 3. Spencer Wright, 89, $15,654; 4. Brody Cress, 88, $11,000; 5. Ryder Wright, 85, $6,769; 6. (tie) Zeke Thurston and Colt Gordon, 82, $2,115 each. Tie-down roping: 1. Ty Harris, 7.4 seconds, $26,231; 2. Riley Pruitt, 7.7, $20,7313; 3. Shane Hanchey, 7.9, $15,654; 4. Tuf Cooper, 8.0, $11,000; 5. (tie) Tyson Durfey and Adam Gray, 8.1, $5,500 each. Barrel racing: 1. Dona Kay Rule, 13.56, $26,231; 2. Amberleight Moore, 13.63, $20,731; 3. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 13.63, $15,654; 4. Hailey Kinsel, 13.86, $11,000; 5. Jennifer Sharp, 13.88, $4,649; 6. Lacinda Rose, 13.92, $4,231. Bull riding: 1. Daylon Swearingen, 92 points on Big Stone Rodeo’s War Cry, $26,231; 2. Koby Radley, 90.5, $20,731; 3. (tie) Tyler Bingham and Sage Kimzey, 89, $13,327 each; 5. (tie) Jordan Spears and Clayton Sellars, 85.5, $5,500 each.

LAS VEGAS – A year ago on the fifth night, Clayton Biglow set a National Finals Rodeo arena record with a 93-point bareback ride. On Monday, he came within half a point of that mark to win the fifth round for the second straight year. He scored 92.5 points on Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Scarlett Belle to claim the top prize, $26,231. “They’ve won four or five rounds on her before I got her,” said Biglow of Clements, California. “She has tied me; I’ve been on other horses and split two rounds here, and the other guys had Scarlett Belle. I finally got my shot at her. “Every time they nod their head on her, she is going to be great. I think she has a better trip tonight than she usually does. She was outstanding. She rode like a dang Cadillac.” While the powerful mare seemed like a luxury car, the cowboy has been driving like a NASCAR champion. He’s placed in three of five go-rounds, and his victory was the first of this year. Alas, it’s just a continuation of an outstanding regular season that saw him enter his fourth NFR No. 1 in the world standings. He just extended his lead and, almost as importantly, moved into the lead in the average race. He has ridden five horses for a cumulative score of 435 points, a point and a half ahead of Tim O’Connell and Trenton Montero. Another telling statement is he was just the biggest of many big scores. In fact, the fifth round featured four rides that were 90 points or better. At most performances of the NFR, an 89-point score will be the winner, but not in 2019; on Monday night, Richmond Champion’s 89 was good enough for sixth place, the last spot to catch money. “Man, this was so much fun,” Biglow said of his ride on Scarlett Belle. “Virgil was great, but that was just as great. It felt awesome.” Last December, he set the standard on Virgil, a horse of the year from C5 Rodeo. He offered a comparison between the two bucking beasts. “He was more of a bucker than Scarlett Belle, but she was a lot nicer to ride,” he said. “They started out at 89.5, and they could only go up from there.” “All those guys back there knew we had that kind of horsepower. We put these horses together. We know each and every one of them is going to be outstanding. Those guys are so dang good now, the best spur ride is going to win. The match-ups were great tonight.”

LAS VEGAS – Saddle bronc rider Colt Gordon has quickly learned the lights of Las Vegas can burn pretty bright. “I’m kind of just working into the Vegas atmosphere,” said Gordon, who earned his first paycheck of this year’s National Finals Rodeo on Monday night. “It is not going as I had planned, but it is going to change around toward the end of the week.” It took four days for him to get acclimated to the Nevada desert and all that goes on in Sin City over this magical 10 days. This is ProRodeo’s grand finale, and there’s a pucker factor in the Thomas & Mack Center that can’t be felt at any other rodeo across the country. On Monday night, he matched moves with Frontier Rodeo’s Maple Leaf for 82 points to finish in a tie for sixth place. That was worth $2,115, but it also might be the stepping stone he needs. “That was a really good horse,” said Gordon, 22, of Comanche, Oklahoma. “She’s really strong, slow. I got a little loose there toward the end, but I got to finish it. It got the ball rolling for the rest of the week. Hopefully it keeps leading to good things.” He qualified for the NFR as the No. 14 in the world standings with a little more than $91,000 in regular-season earnings. Only the top 15 contestants in each event graduate to compete in the championship, so it’s a special occasion for the young cowboy to be playing amongst ProRodeo’s elite at its premier event. He still has five more chances to cash in. He may have missed out on opportunities through the first four rounds, but the NFR is at its halfway point. Go-round winners pocket $26,231 each night, so he has a grand chance before him. He found himself on the winning end just in time. “All the horses were extremely good, and there wasn’t one you wouldn’t want to get on,” he said. Maple Leaf is pretty special. She was the 2013 PRCA Saddle Bronc of the Year, so it was a great draw for Gordon. He also leaned on thoughts from one of his traveling partners, Wade Sundell, the reigning world champion who has eight NFR qualifications to his credit. “Actually, he called me (Monday) morning when he found out what I had and told me what to do on her,” Gordon said. “That was a big help. He was the one who told me not to spur her out for two jumps. I was sure glad I didn’t do that.” Sundell also offered other tidbits of advice that became helpful. “It’s just a rodeo and that I shouldn’t try to hard,” Gordon said. “I think those first few rounds, I was trying to make stuff happen instead of just letting things happen. That was the main thing to night, that no matter what happens, just go out and have fun. “When you’re looking at $26,000 a round, you’re thinking you need to do the best you can, but really, you just need to not think about it and just do your job.”

LAS VEGAS – Megan Duvall has more influence on her husband than she may think. “My wife made me stay positive,” Riley Duvall said. “I didn’t have a choice, but it worked out good.” Through the first four nights of the National Finals Rodeo, it was hard for him to stay positive. He had thrown down all four steers but was a tad slow to collect Vegas cash. He changed that Monday night with a 4.1-second run, which guided him to a third-place finish in the fifth round. That was worth $15,654. “My goal this year was to start off with a bang; I wanted to place right off the bat,” said Duvall, a three-time NFR qualifier from Checotah, Oklahoma, the Steer Wrestling capital of the World. “My first three steers weren’t bad, but they were toward the bottom of the pen. Things weren’t going very well. “I had a really good one (Sunday) night, and I screwed up pretty bad. I had one I liked (Monday) night, and I just tried to stay positive.” It worked. “I was wanting to whine around and mope last night, and my wife said, “There are six rounds left, so stop being a baby.’ She was right, and I hate to say that.” While he has struggled, throwing down steers is vital. He sits third in the all-important average, which pays out the top eight cumulate times at the end of the 10-round championship. If he were to remain third, Duvall would pocket more than $43,000 when the NFR concludes. Still, go-round winners will earn $26,231 each night, so he has plenty of opportunities before him over the next five rounds. “I just need to make a good run at everything,” he said. “My horse has been working great. Sam (Duvall, his father) is doing a great job hazing. It just wasn’t clicking so we just had to get the ball rolling.”

LAS VEGAS – A little history lesson on Monday night helped Coleman Proctor handle his business during the fifth round of the National Finals Rodeo. “I had a steer that was like my first-round steer,” said Proctor, who, with partner Ryan Motes, stopped the clock in 4.4 seconds to share second place on the fifth night of ProRodeo’s championship. “Chad Masters had him and said that the steer didn’t score good and that I needed to take a normal start. That’s what I did. “The great thing about our sport is the comradery; everybody’s trying to help everybody win. I tried to take the right start. Heisman hit the nail on the start. I can’t be an inch closer. That’s Lady Luck right there.” Masters is a two-time world champion who had the steer in Friday’s second round, so his scouting report gave Proctor all the information needed. With that, he earned his second straight paycheck of this year’s NFR, this one worth $18,129. He has pushed his NFR earnings to $48,923 and his season earnings to $153,241. He is fourth in the world standings. “That steer hit wild and was long down the pen, and Motesy did a great job of finishing it off,” said Proctor, a five-time NFR qualifier in heading from Pryor, Oklahoma. “If you’re rockin’ a pink goatee, how can you not be a full-size man when you heel one like that?” Monday’s round was Pink Night at the NFR, a designation to help support the fight against cancer. It’s happened on the fifth night of the finale for more than a decade, and Proctor has had plenty of success in the fifth round; that includes two go-round wins. Motes always dyes his facial hair to go along with the special night. After a slow start in the opening three rounds, Proctor and Motes have cashed in strong each of the past two nights; they were second in the fourth round, too. Both remain in the hunt for a world championship, though Proctor’s focus now is to try to secure that Montana Silversmiths gold buckle for his partner. “I told my wife, ‘Wow, what a difference 48 hours makes,’ ” he said. “I appreciate all the concern and the worrying about me, but our preparation and ground work were laid, and I have played with what brought us here. We stuck to what we do. Motesy is going to have a great chance to win the world at the end of the week. “I’m just sticking to what I know. I knew I was lucky when I started this game, and I feel like everything’s going to go our way these next five rounds.”

LAS VEGAS – Jordan Spears’ philosophy about riding bulls at the National Finals Rodeo is pretty simple, but it might just work out well for him after all. “My dad always said, ‘If you ride every one, eventually they will have to pay you,’ ” said Spears, originally from Redding, California, now living in Caldwell, Idaho. “It’s great to win money here, but I can’t complain. I’ve not been placing as high as I want, but I have been doing my job. “With bull riding, if you just keep doing your job and staying on, you will get paid eventually.” He earned his first paycheck of the 2019 NFR by riding Flying U Rodeo’s Countin’ Cards for 86 points. With that, he finished in a tie for fifth place in the fifth round and pocketed $5,500. More importantly, it was the third time in five nights he had a qualifying eight-second ride. Now he sits sixth in the all-important average race with a three-ride cumulative score of 252.5 points. That’s big, because none of the cowboys has ridden all five so far and only two have ridden four of five. If Spears can remain consistent and battle to stay on, he can really cash in when the NFR concludes Saturday night. The top aggregate score will pocket a bonus worth $67,269. Of course, it’s nice to be matched with a bull he’s been around. “I’ve seen him quite a few times,” he said of Countin’ Cards. “I was born in Grass Valley, California, which is about an hour from Flying U. I have seen that bull the last couple of years, and I’ve always wanted to get on him. I was really excited about my match-up with him.” It also was proof that the hard work he put in prior to arriving in Las Vegas is paying off. “I went with working out and focusing a little more on being prepared when I got here for the 10 rounds,” Spears said. “Halfway through, I feel as good as I did on Day 1. Physically I am fit and ready for five more bulls. Dedicating myself and putting my all into winning as much money and being as healthy as I can, I can definitely tell a difference. “From being her the last few times, I have learned from it. I’m starting to get a little smarter and just trying to do my job and stay on every bull I can. Being in shape is definitely helping, and being fit is a big part of staying healthy after 10 days in a row. It is a little tough on you.” It also affects the mental aspects of the game. In bull riding, 95 percent of what happens on a bull is based on a mental approach. Riding bulls is muscle memory and reaction, and Spears is working hard to not let the outside stuff affect him. “I’m not worried about the average or winning the round,” Spears said. “I’m just keeping it simple and trying to stay on every bull. I’ve been doing pretty good so far.”

LAS VEGAS – When prospecting for gold in the Nevada desert, the best tool anyone can half is patience. It can be easy to take a short-cut to find the path, but it’s better to dig through a variety of opportunities to seek out that vein that will reward the sacrifices and provide the biggest bounty. That’s been Tuf Cooper’s approach during the National Finals Rodeo. Patience has been the key. He’s rifled for the gold in recent years, only to find the results sporadic at best. On Monday night, he roped and tied his calf in 8.0 seconds, a strong, consistent run that also paid him $11,000 for finishing fourth in the fifth round. With that, he pushed his Las Vegas earnings to $47,231, aided mightily by his Round 3 victory. But the big move is in the all-important average race, where he sits No. 2 after roping and tying five calves in a cumulative time of 42.0 seconds. He trails the aggregate leader, NFR rookie Taylor Santos, by a second and a half. Besides earning that Montana Silversmiths gold buckle, another goal for cowboys is to win that NFR average title, which will pay the winner more than $67,000 with the finale concludes Saturday night. That could play a roll into everything for Cooper. He continues to be in the hunt for two world championships: the all-around and tie-down roping. It will depend on what happens in Las Vegas to see who is crowned in both. He is third in the all-around, $38,475 behind bull rider Stetson Wright and less than $18,000 behind the runner-up, team roping header Clay Smith. While all three have competed in multiple events all season, only Cooper advanced to the National Finals in two: Two weeks ago, he competed at the Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping, picking up more than $20,000 in Mulvane, Kansas. That means the all-around crown will be decided in Sin City. In tie-down roping, Cooper’s good friend, Shane Hanchey, has parlayed two go-round wins into the lead in the standings. Cooper is fourth but is less than $50,000 behind Hanchey. The difference between the two is their place in the average; while Cooper is second, Hanchey is 10th after suffering a no-time in the second round. As the cowboys look at the final five nights of the 2019 ProRodeo campaign, the races are heating up, just as they should be.

LAS VEGAS – It’s been almost nine years since Richmond Champion first rode Picket Pro Rodeo’s great horse, Top Flight, an electric bay that has led many cowboys to the pay window. Champion revisited his old friend on Monday night, and the two danced across the Thomas & Mack Center dirt for 89 points to finish sixth in the fifth go-round of the National Finals Rodeo. “I won my first rodeo on her at the rodeo in Belton, Texas, and I was 89 points on her that day,” he said. “I was 89 on here eight years later here at the NFR. “That’s just a cool horse. She is a veteran. She loves it. She’s done it before. The horseman in me likes that part. When you get back on the bucking chutes, you go to battle. It was really fun, and I was happy with how it went.” At most rodeos, and even in most rounds at the NFR, an 89-point ride is a winner, but that’s not happening at this NFR. On Monday night alone, there were four scores in the 90s, so Champion’s great ride fell to sixth place in the round. Still, it was worth $4,231. “I was happy to place,” said Champion of The Woodlands, Texas, now living in Stevensville, Montana. “I had a couple of dry rounds. The ‘E (Eliminator) Pen’ didn’t go the way I wanted it, but it woke me up, too. I was in a little daze and having fun. I had one test me, and I had to go back to the basics.” He kicked off his NFR run with by winning the opening round after receiving a re-ride. That 91.5-point ride opened the flood gates, and bareback riders have posted 10 rides of 90 points or better in the first five rounds. Still, that was a test of his endurance and training. “When you get on two in the first round, you are feeling it the next day,” he said. “It seemed like whenever I got off the third round, I started feeling better the next morning. That’s the way it goes from out here. You feel consistent the last five horses you get on. Your body is changing through the beginning, then you hit that spot where, as long as nothing crazy happens, you just stay that way. That is where we are now.” When these bareback riders are feeling that way and getting on this caliber of horses, big things are bound to happen. “At this point, I’m expecting nothing but 90s from everybody,” said Champion, who has earned $56,115 in Las Vegas and sits fourth in the world standings with $186,944 in earnings this season.

LAS VEGAS – It seems as though bareback rider Tanner Aus is going to have to be close to 90 points at this year’s National Finals Rodeo if he intends to win any money. “I knew it was going to be like this,” said Aus, a four-time NFR qualifier from Granite Falls, Minnesota. “It is taking 90 or better to win every round. This is the cream of the crop.” On Monday night, he rode Three Hills Rodeo’s Weenie for 89.5 points to finish fifth in the fifth round. That was worth $6,769 and pushed his NFR earnings to $43,000. He sits 10th in the world standings with just shy of $125,000. At most rodeos, and even at most rounds of the NFR, Aus’ 89.5 would have been enough to win. Not at this NFR, though. There were four rides in the 90s on Monday night alone, taking the total to 10 through the first five rounds of his year’s championship. “That is what we call the ‘TV pen,’ ” Aus said. “Of course, every horse deserves to be there, but those are the ones we really hold out for. Those are the ones when we show up to big rodeos throughout the season, we’ve got our fingers crossed to draw then. “It doesn’t get any better than that. If we could do 10 nights like this, we would. It is tough. I was just hanging on for a check tonight with an 89.5, and I’m thankful for every cent I make here. It’s tougher all the time, and after five nights, everyone is still just amped up and ready to go.” That means there are five nights remaining in the 2019 season, five more opportunities to cash in at the richest rodeo in the world. Aus won the third round with a 90-point ride on Frontier Rodeo’s Full Baggage, which paid him $26,231. He’d like to do that a few more times over the next few days. He knew there was a good chance to make some money when he arrived at the Thomas & Mack Center on Monday. “Weenie is a great horse,” he said. “She has a little bit of a reputation for being psychotic in the chute. (Three Hills owners) Dave and Jake Morehead were both there when I got back with my rigging, and we were all loving up on her a little bit, keeping her calm. “She’s always good, always performs in the arena. The Moreheads have gotten to be great friends of mine. They have helped me out a lot.” That help has paid off over the years, and he hopes it continues through the rest of this campaign.

LAS VEGAS – Monday was a magical night for the bareback riders at the National Finals Rodeo. The fifth round in Sin City is called the “TV Pen,” featuring the most electric bucking horses in the business. Matched with the top 15 cowboys in the sport, it was a sparkling night of big-time rides, highlighted by four rides that were at least 90 points. “Four 90s in one performance … holy cow,” said Orin Larsen, who was 91 points on Frontier Rodeo’s Gun Fire to finish third in the fifth go-round, worth $15,654. “Anyone who went could definitely be 90. That is one of the best pens of horses I have seen in a very long time. “Everyone is riding really good. The horses just love this arena, so it was pretty spectacular.” The world standings leader, Clayton Biglow, posted the biggest score of the night with a 92.5-point ride, just a half point off the arena record. Tilden Hooper was 92, and Larsen jumped in with his score to catch his third payday through five rounds of action inside the Thomas & Mack Center. “I knew Gun Fire was definitely going to be the horsepower,” said Larsen of Inglis, Manitoba, now living in Gering, Nebraska. “That horse rides like a Cadillac until he goes straight, then he feels like a Mack truck.” He has a little history with Gun Fire, though the two hadn’t been matched together before. At the Cody (Wyoming) Stampede earlier this year, Larsen led through most of the rodeo, then was upset on the final day. “I was 93 on (C5 Rodeo’s) Make Up Face, then Caleb Bennett was 93.5 on Gun Fire,” he said. “You can’t say enough about that horse. He is one of my favorite horses to get on now.” Through five nights in Las Vegas, Larsen has pocketed $54,000 and has moved to No. 2 in the world standings. He is a little more than $18,000 behind Biglow with five nights left in the 2019 season. “Now we’ve got things clicking the way they should be,” Larsen said. “We will just carry on to the 10th round.”

Bareback riding: 1. Orin Larsen, 90 points of Frontier Rodeo’s Night Fist, $26,231; 2. Clint Laye, 88, $20,731; 3. (tie) Ty Breuer and Caleb Bennett, 87, $13,327 each; 5. (tie) Kaycee Feild and Trenten Montero, 86.5, $5,500 each. Steer wrestling: 1. Bridger Chambers, 3.6 second, $26,231; 2. (tie) Cameron Morman and Ty Erickson, 3.7, $18,192 each; 4. J.D. Struxness, 3.9, $11,000; 5. Hunter Cure, 4.1, $6,769; 6. (tie) Dakota Eldridge and Scott Guenthner, 4.4, $2,115 each. Team roping: 1. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 3.7 seconds, $26,231; 2. Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes, 3.8. $20,7313; 3. Luke Brown/Paul Eaves, 3.9, $15,654; 4. (tie) Clay Smith/Jade Corkill and Riley Minor/Brady Minor, 4.3, $8,885 each; 6. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 4.4, $4,231. Saddle bronc riding: 1. Rusty Wright, 89.5 points on Diamond G Rodeo’s Miss Nancy, $26,231; 2. Spencer Wright, 84.5, $20,731; 3. Zeke Thurston, 83.5, $15,654; 4. Brody Cress, 81.5, $11,000; 5. Sterling Crawley, 80.5, $6,769; 6. Jacobs Crawley, 80, $4,231. Tie-down roping: 1. Shane Hanchey, 7.5 seconds, $26,231; 2. Riley Pruitt, 7.7, $20,731; 3. Marty Yates, 8.0, $15,654; 4. (tie) Haven Meged and Taylor Santos, 8.1, $8,885 each; 6. Cooper Martin, 8.7, $4,231. Barrel racing: 1. Emily Miller, 13.64 seconds, $26,231; 2. Amberleigh Moore, 13.75, $20,731; 3. Jessica Routier, 13.77, $15,654; 4. Ivy Conrado, 13.79, $11,000; 5. Ericka Nelson, 13.81, $6,769; 6. Hailey Kinsel, 13.88, $4,231. Bull riding: 1. Stetson Wright, 91 points on Painted Pony Championship Rodeo’s Holy Holly, $26,231; 2. Trey Benton III, 90, $20,731; 3. Boudreaux Campbell, 88, $15,654; 4. Sage Steele Kimzey, 86.5, $11,000; 5. Trey Kimzey, 86, $6,769; 6. Jeff Askey, 85, $4,231.

North Carolinian earns top seed with his victory in Qualifier Round LAS VEGAS – In his heart, Chase Blythe knows he belongs among the very best in Bullfighters Only. On Sunday afternoon at the Tropicana Las Vegas, he put himself in position to test his theory. He posted the highest-marked fight of the Qualifier Seeding Round and is now firmly in place for the Quarterfinals of the BFO Las Vegas Championship. “This means the world to me,” said Blythe of Concord, North Carolina, who posted an 85.5-point fight and will now be matched head-to-head against BFO’s 12th-ranked bullfighter, Anthony Morse of Port Orchard, Washington. “I’ve watched the BFO for years. I came to Las Vegas last year and didn’t do any good. I want to prove that I can run with the big dogs, that I belong in the top 12.” Sunday’s event featured the 12 bullfighters who advanced out of Friday and Saturday’s Qualifier Round matches. Blythe is matched against lowest-seeded man in the top 12; while the lowest score will face the No. 1 man, Aaron Mercer. Because he was the only bullfighter unable to finish his bullfight, Scrawney Brooks will face off against the man who has already clinched the BFO world championship. Still, they all have a chance when the Quarterfinal Rounds kick off on Monday and Tuesday. “Today was probably the best bullfight I’ve ever put on,” Blythe said. “I had a really good bull, and that made a lot of the difference. “I’m also trying to win the United States Bullfighting title, so I wasn’t going to let it slip through my hands.” The USBF was created to grow freestyle bullfighting on a grassroots level. Its partnership with the BFO allows up-and-coming bullfighters the opportunity to earn points toward the BFO Pendleton Whisky World Standings while gaining experience at USBF events. Most of the qualifiers earned the right to compete in Las Vegas through their experience in the USBF. On Sunday afternoon, Blythe proved the concept is working. “It was good to go to those bullfights, because they’re not as big, but you can get the same experience,” he said. “You get to work through those nerves and work through the problems you might have. So, when you come to these events, you’re ready.” During his first bullfight on Friday, he was run over by his bull, suffering a contusion m on his calf and a head wound that would require six staples. “I came into this knowing that whatever happens is going to happen and that I just want to put on a good bullfight,” Blythe said. “I wasn’t going to let what happened to me the other day show that I didn’t belong here. “I’m just going to keep doing the same thing I’ve been doing, and that’s just enjoying fighting bulls. Just to be here is so exciting and so motivating for me, nothing else matters. The guys at Fit N Wise are keeping my body in good shape, so I don’t have to worry about my injuries at all.” Results Chase Blythe, 85.5 points; 2. Jamie Clinch, 85; 3. (tie) Dylan Idleman, Clay Moore and Riley McKettrick, 81.5; 6. (tie) Preston Robinson and Zach Call, 78.5; 8. Austin Ashley, 78; 9. Seth Wilson, 77; 10. Tyler Washburn, 76; 11. Brandon Moore, 75; 12. Scrawney Brooks, 0.

LAS VEGAS – Frontier Rodeo has been known to have many of the best horses in the world of ProRodeo, so Orin Larsen knew he had something special even before he got on Night Fist for the fourth round of the National Finals Rodeo. “When you have a Frontier horse, you have to take advantage of it,” said Larsen, who rode Night Fist for 90 points to win Sunday night, collecting $26,231. “That horse felt awesome. I was pretty happy to have her. “I’d never been on that horse, but everyone was happy for me to have it. She was really she was really showy and photogenic, so that was cool.” What’s cooler is that the $38,346 he’s earned so far at this year’s NFR has pushed him up a spot to second in the world standings. He now trails the leader, Clayton Biglow, by $7,663. He is easily in the hunt for a world championship with six nights remaining in the 2019 ProRodeo season. That’s even after having low scores the previous two nights. Larsen was 76.5 points Friday and 75 points Saturday, so he wanted a bit of a Redemption Sunday. “I was pretty bummed out the last couple nights, because it was rider error,” said Larsen of Inglis, Manitoba, now living in Gering, Nebraska, with his wife, Alexa. “I knew I didn’t perform as well. I was waiting for the fight to begin instead of me bringing the fight to it. I think me just relaxing and bringing the fight to it loosened me up. It was cool and fun. “It’s almost a redo. You screw up the last two, and now it’s time to figure something out. That was a great pen of horses, and I was pretty excited to have the one I did.” With his ride, he became the sixth cowboy in four nights to have scored at least 90 points in bareback riding. It has made for the most exciting first few nights in the event’s recent history. “We’ve got a salty group of guys and a salty group of horses here,” he said. “It’s pretty amazing. If you can get that many 90s by the fourth round, you know the caliber is just getting better and better. I am extremely fortunate to be in that same locker room with them. “I’m just plum tickled to be here. I’m excited for these next few rounds.” Look for scores like that to continue, especially in Monday’s fifth round, which will feature the most electric animals in the sport in what the cowboys call the “TV Pen.” A year ago, Biglow won the fifth round with an arena-record 93-point ride. “It will probably take 88 or 89 points just to place,” Larsen said. “I wouldn’t be surprised that you might see four or five in the 90s.” The way things have gone so far, it’s almost likely.

LAS VEGAS – When things don’t go a competitor’s way, that person could either pout, blame others or move forward in a positive way. Ty Breuer is no prima donna. When he suffered a no-time in Round 3, he realized the missed opportunity, then he made up for it in Sunday’s fourth go-round of the National Finals Rodeo. He rode Sozo of Sankey Pro Rodeo & Phenom Genetics for 87 points to finish in a tie for third place on the night. “I had that horse at my hometown rodeo a few years ago and ended up winning my on him,” said Breuer of Mandan, North Dakota. “That is a really good horse, and I had seen him all summer. At every Sankey rodeo, they win on that horse. He’s really nice and rider-friendly.” Every horse in Sunday’s pen was rider-friendly, unlike Saturday night’s grouping of buckers. Breuer’s zero came in the “Eliminator Pen,” a prized list of the hardest-to-ride horses in the game. His draw, Northcott Macza’s Spilled Perfume, is every bit of that. “My wrist got it pretty good (Saturday) night,” he said. “I talked to some of the guys in the locker room about that horse before I got on her, but no one said anything about what she was like. When I got back to the locker room after that round, they said, ‘Oh, good job; you made the pickup man on her. We’ve never even rode her.’ ” Breuer’s problem came at the start when he failed to secure his mark-out: firmly having the boots over the horse’s shoulders when it lands on its front hooves. That helps give the horse an advantage, but it also sets up the ride. Failure to do so results in a no-score. “That’s the way it goes sometimes,” he said. “You’ve just got to keep riding and forget about that one.” He did, and in the process picked up $13,327 Sunday. He has earned $32,212 at the NFR in four nights and has pushed his season earnings to $120,911. He has moved up two spots to 10th in the world standings. He’s also part of an elite field of NFR bareback riders. Through four nights of ProRodeo’s grand championship, cowboys have posted six rides with scores of 90 or better. It’s proof of the talent of both men and beasts at the Thomas & Mack Center over these 10 nights. “Just being in that locker room and everything else that goes with that is great,” Breuer said. “The first guy out tonight was 88 points. It’s just crazy. The top 15 are all that good. That makes it fun.”

LAS VEGAS – J.D. Struxness doesn’t have to hit the gaming tables to make money in Sin City. He’s doing quite well at the Thomas & Mack Center, home of the National Finals Rodeo since 1985 – nine years before he was even born. On Sunday night, he placed for the fourth time in as many nights and has pocketed $62,321 in Las Vegas. It gets better, though: He still has six more nights to cash in. “That is a good thing to do out here,” said Struxness if Milan, Minnesota, now living in Alva, Oklahoma. “Anytime you can place in a round, it’s good. Hopefully we can keep chipping away at it.” His biggest year at the NFR came in is first, when he earned just shy of $130,000 in 2016; he won at least a share of four go-rounds that year. A year later, he pocketed $109,000. In just 24 rounds in Las Vegas, he has been paid $300,473. He has yet to win a round in 2019, but that’s OK. On Sunday night, he wrestled his steer to the ground in 3.9 seconds to finish fourth in the round, collecting $11,000. It all adds up. “My first year, we stubbed our toe a couple of times,” he said. “This year, we are just staying share and staying on top of things. We have to be aggressive, but we probably aren’t cutting loose as much as we did that year. Being able to place in four rounds in a row, that’s a good momentum-starter.” Momentum has been his way. He’s the No. 1 man in the average, having knocked down four steers in a cumulative time of 16.3 seconds. He is four-tenths of a second ahead of the No. 2 man in the aggregate race, two-time and defending world champion Tyler Waguespack. “Horsepower definitely helps,” Struxness said. “This year, I’m riding Stockton Graves’ good horse, Freeway. Stockton’s on the hazing side and has Kody Woodward’s horse, Roany. Having those two out here and having Stockton hazing, there I a lot of confidence going in there every night. “Knowing that we are going to get a good start and catch up on everything really helps. All I’ve got to do is do my job when my feet hit the ground.” He became a dad for the first time just before the NFR, and he/ said spending time with his daughter, Everlee, has been a blessing. It’s been his retreat from the stresses of making runs for the biggest money in the game every night while he’s in the Nevada desert. “With my new baby girl this year, it has been one for me to go back to the room and love on her,” he said. “That has been good for me, and we just look forward to the next night every night. “I think my biggest support is my family. They are here and have been helping me with my daughter and everything. They have been a huge support so we stay rested up and fresh, and there’s nothing to worry about.” It’s also a business trip, and his business is bulldogging to the best of his ability every night. “I think the big thing that helps is years of running steers in this building,” Struxness said. “The first year, I got excited, tried to catch up fast, and I made mistakes. This year I’m just trying to have a start every time and make the best run on the ground and steer you have. “Hopefully it will put you in the money. If not, hopefully you make a solid run that is going to keep you in the average at the end.”

LAS VEGAS – Just when Lady Luck looked as though she were angry with Coleman Proctor, he was dealt a winning hand. After three rough rounds – a couple of penalties in the opener and two no-times to kick start his 10 days in Sin City – Proctor and his heeling partner, Ryan Motes, cashed in their chips in Sunday’s fourth round of the National Finals Rodeo. They stopped the clock in 3.8 seconds, just one-tenth of a second behind the winners, Chad Masters and Joseph Harrison. That second-place finish was worth $20,731, but the value bet was even greater for the header from Pryor, Oklahoma. “I finally got that monkey off my back, because he was getting pretty heavy,” Proctor said. “It’s been rough, but everything’s feeling great, my horse is great, and I’m pretty happy. I’m beginning to get control of the start out here. “I still have a lot of confidence. I feel relaxed. I feel like we’re prepared and ready, and we’ll just take advantage of the opportunities when they come.” Through the stress of the intense competition – and the troubles that have come his way through the early runs at the NFR – he has maintained a positive attitude. He posts daily on social media, always smiling, always upbeat. It’s one of the reasons he continues to be a fan favorite in Las Vegas. “I said before I got here that I wanted to just enjoy this experience, and I have,” he said. “I’m sleeping great. I’m not stressed out here. Things happen. It’s been a blessed year, and it’s a blessing to be back here and getting to rope again (Monday). “I think the one thing that helped with that is the setup we had for practice. We know what we need to do in this barn. I think if a guy was less than prepared, a guy would get nervous. We had three bad breaks. I’m one of the luckiest humans in the world, and I knew they couldn’t keep me down all 10 nights.” The game plan he and Motes put together prior to the NFR was to get off to a quick start. They’ve adjusted the blue print as needed. “It just didn’t go our way, and little, silly stuff was happening,” Proctor said. “It didn’t rattle my confidence, because we’ve had such a great year. My partner is one of the best in the world, and I trust him with everything I’ve got when we back into the box. “It is what it is, but we’re having a good time.” He also made the right adjustments to perform a little better Sunday, albeit psychologically. It’s more like a superstition than anything, but sometimes gamblers need to change seats or flip their hats around if they need to get the cards coming a different way. “I got me a new hat, a new pair of boots and pulled out my new five-strand Lone Star rope,” he said with a laugh. “My dad told me that if you’re the one that throws fast balls, then go throw fast balls. I brought it as fast as I could. “I’ve never celebrated that much for a second-place finish in my life. It felt just great.”

Bareback riding: 1. Tanner Aus, 90 points on Frontier Rodeo’s Full Baggage, $26,231; 2. Trenton Montero, 89, $20,731; 3. Kaycee Field, 88, $15,654; 4. Tim O’Connell, 87, $11,000; 5. Clayton Biglow, 86, $6,769; 6. Caleb Bennett, 84, $4,231. Steer wrestling: 1. Hunter Cure, 3.8 seconds, $26,231; 2. (tie) Tyler Pearson and Will Lummus, 4.1, $18,192 each; 4. (tie) Tyler Waguespack, Bridger Chambers and J.D. Struxness, 4.3, $7,333. Team roping: 1. Tyler Wade/Cole Davison, 3.7 seconds, $26,231; 2. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 3.9, $20,731; 3. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 4.0, $15,654; 4. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, 4.6, $11,000; 5. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 4.7, $6,769; 6. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 5.1, $4,231.

Bareback riding: 1. Tanner Aus, 90 points on Frontier Rodeo’s Full Baggage, $26,231; 2. Trenton Montero, 89, $20,731; 3. Kaycee Field, 88, $15,654; 4. Tim O’Connell, 87, $11,000; 5. Clayton Biglow, 86, $6,769; 6. Caleb Bennett, 84, $4,231. Steer wrestling: 1. Hunter Cure, 3.8 seconds, $26,231; 2. (tie) Tyler Pearson and Will Lummus, 4.1, $18,192 each; 4. (tie) Tyler Waguespack, Bridger Chambers and J.D. Struxness, 4.3, $7,333. Team roping: 1. Tyler Wade/Cole Davison, 3.7 seconds, $26,231; 2. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 3.9, $20,731; 3. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 4.0, $15,654; 4. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, 4.6, $11,000; 5. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 4.7, $6,769; 6. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 5.1, $4,231. Saddle bronc riding: 1. Chase Brooks, 90 points on Outlawbuckers Rodeo’s Lunatic Party, $26,231; 2. Zeke Thurston, 89.5, $20,731; 3. Dawson Hay, 88.5, $15,654; 4. Brody Cress, 88, $11,000; 5. (tie) Spencer Wright and Jake Watson, 87, $5,500 each. Tie-down roping: 1. Tuf Cooper, 6.9 seconds, $26,231; 2. Shane Hanchey, 7.1, $20,731; 3. (tie) Ty Harris and Shad Mayfield, 7.3, $13,326 each; 5. Tyler Milligan, 7.6, $6,769; 6. Taylor Santos, 7.9, $4,231. Barrel racing: 1. Amberleigh Moore, 13.62 seconds; $26,231; 2. Emily Miller, 13.63, $20,731; 3. Dona Kay Rule, 13.68, $15,654; 4. Jessica Routier, 13.84, $11,000; 5. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 13.88, $6,769; 6. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 13.90, $4.231. Bull riding: 1. Koby Radley, 92 points on Big Stone Rodeo’s Spotted Demon, $33,564; 2. Jordan Hansen, 90, $28,064; 3. Trey Benton III, 89.5, $22,987; no other qualified rides.

LAS VEGAS – No matter how much he wanted to portray the part of Elsa in “Frozen,” Tanner Aus just couldn’t let it go. On Thursday’s opening night of the National Finals Rodeo, Aus was saddled with a no-score and took himself out of the chance to win some money in the average, a large-paying bonus given to the top eight cowboys in the 10-ride cumulative score. It was also a missed opportunity on the final 10 nights of the 2019 ProRodeo season. “It comes in waves, because part of you says it is just another rodeo, and you put it out of your head,” said Aus, a bareback rider from Granite Falls, Minnesota. “Part of you is looking out on The Strip and saying, ‘I can’t believe this just happened.’ You’ve just got to get it out of year head. “I probably quit thinking about it (Saturday).” That’s because Aus rode one of the nastiest bucking horses in the business – Frontier Rodeo’s Full Baggage – for 90 points to win Saturday’s third go-round, earning $26,231. It was his first paycheck of this year’s championship. “This is the best place in the world,” he said. “You can’t hang your head about a zero; you just can’t do it. There are hundreds of guys that would like to be in my position. You just forget about it.” Aus became the fifth NFR bareback rider to score at least 90 points in three go-rounds; three did it on opening night, with Richmond Champion winning the round, and Trenton Montero accomplished it in winning Round 2. “It has been incredible,” he said. “I feel the competition and the horses we picked to come here is making it crazy. We joke in the locker room, but if it’s going to be this tough, what are we going to do. We are seriously going to have to step up our game again. Everybody showed up here prepared, even the guys that are here for their first trip. “Everyone is in shape; everyone is feeling mean. It’s really great to be part of it.” Full Baggage is a two-time Bareback Horse of the Year, and he continues to be as strong as he was when he first won the title eight years ago. He proved it again Saturday night inside the Thomas & Mack Center. “When I saw that I got Full Baggage, I was very excited,” Aus said. “I had been on that horse one other time, and I was 90 in Corpus Christi (Texas) this spring, so I had that in my head. I was really thankful for the way it turned out. It was just a fight. We had our (Eliminator) pen out tonight, so every ride that was eight seconds long was a fight. I’m happy that it went well. “He’s very consistent, and they buck him out of the front chute with a left-hand delivery, so he angles across there. He was everything you want; he is strong and a lot of time really gets in the air.” As with all the horses in the “Eliminator Pen,” he was definitely a handful. Horses that buck in the third and eighth rounds are considered the toughest-to-ride in the world, and they proved it again Saturday. “There were horses in that pen tonight that strike fear into the hearts of men,” Aus said. “This was a real E pen. To have one that I’ve been on before was a leg up in confidence.”

LAS VEGAS – Michael Jordan is the best example of greatness while competing in less than optimum health. He played one of the best games of his career in Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals after what trainers described as a bout of food poisoning. If the National Finals Rodeo were any comparison, tie-down Tuf Cooper has been battling through his own troubles, a nasty bug that has affected him through the first three go-rounds of ProRodeo’s grand championship. He hasn’t let it affect his work inside the Thomas & Mack Center, though, and shined Saturday night, roping and tying his calf in 6.9 seconds to win the third round. “I’ve been a little under the weather, but it’s something you can block out for six or seven seconds at a time,” he said with a hint of a laugh. “My wife went to the doctor today. Hopefully we’re going to get this thing lined out. We’ve got seven more days in Vegas. “It’s a marathon. You want to win every chance you get, but you also want to keep putting together runs and get the big check at the end.” He’s done that. In fact, his 24.5-second cumulative time on three runs is atop the field, but only by a slim margin; it’s also very early, and the goal of every cowboy in the field is to be atop the average at the end of this 10-day run. Cooper’s first paycheck in Las Vegas this December was worth $26,231 and pushed his season earnings to $141,823. His run on Saturday night was the fastest so far at this year’s NFR. “To win a world championship, you have to do your best every single night,” said Cooper, a four-time world champion from Decatur, Texas. “You can’t just really go at them, which was my approach last year. I was trying to go at every one of them, and I came up short quite a few rounds. “This year, I’m going to have a smarter approach; you have to score, catch and tie them all down, because the average plays such an important role. That’s all I’ve really been focused on the last four or five months: Go make the same run every night, and hopefully that game plan will work at the end. It has worked before, so hopefully it will continue.” A key part of his success has been his Topaz, a talented bay mare that has been his guiding force since 2012. Cooper also leans on others for a little assistance when necessary, especially this week. “I have a really good team around me,” Cooper said. “We have been multiple times, so everyone knows their drill: my dad; my mom; James Barton, who is taking care of Topaz; my wife; my buddies; and all my sponsors. “They know the drill. They know this is the most important time for a contestant’s career, these 10 days in Vegas. Everyone is lending the best hand they can, and that could just be encouragement. I had a buddy go get me cough medicine and cough drops at 2 in the morning last night. Just little things like that help.” The best medicine for any competitor is winning, and Cooper has had that by the bushel barrel.

LAS VEGAS – The most difficult-to-ride bareback riding horses in ProRodeo are always featured in the third round of the National Finals Rodeo. Over the last two years, Clayton Biglow has struggled in the “Eliminator Pen” of bucking horses and hasn’t managed to get through Round 3 with a score. That changed Saturday night, as the Clements, California, bareback rider handled Calgary Stampede’s Soap Bubbles for 86 points to finish the night in fifth place. “I finally made it through my third round,” he said with a laugh, knowing full well how tough the job is to not only stay on the rank bucking horses but also ride well enough to finish in the money. “That horse was a toad. Bareback riders … we call it a grunter, because I was grunting the entire time I was riding her. “She is a big ol’ blue roan, and she is all that you want, a handful. I wish I would have ridden her better. Obviously, every time you get off, there is something you could have done better, but I’m glad I got her ridden and glad I got a good check out of the round.” He did, and the $6,769 he pocketed Saturday night pushed his NFR earnings to $37,500. He remains No. 1 in the world standings with $219,452, but his lead has diminished a bit after the runner-up, Kaycee Feild, finished third. Biglow leads Feild, a four-time world champion, by less than $18,000. “I have been having some struggles here and there,” said Biglow, now riding at the NFR for the fourth time in his career. “I feel like my spur rides haven’t been as good … well, the first round was good, but the last two nights are below average.” Of course, the difficulty of the “E pen” might have something to do with it, too. He hopes to change that around Sunday, when the bareback riders will face “hoppers,” horses that are very rider friendly. “I guarantee you that we are going to go out there and have a good one that’s going to let you have some fun,” he said. “I’m looking forward to then, forget about (Saturday) and don’t stress about it.” He proposed to his fiancé two weeks ago, and that relationship has been a blessing, especially though the trials, tribulations and success that come through the NFR. Riding the best bareback horses in the world can take a toll on a cowboy’s body. “She’s been taking care of me,” Biglow said of Annierose Marvel Seifert, his longtime girlfriend. “I go to the spa and relax and get my body warmed up. I get a little workout and stretch. My body feels fine. It is working on every cylinder. “My confidence is high, and I’m ready to keep it rolling.”